The liberalization of trade with the European Union will gradually lead to the reduction to zero of 95% of the import taxes, it is said in a guidebook of the Association Agreement, produced by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration. The low import taxes will lead to enhanced competitiveness. As a result, the prices for consumers will decrease, it is said in a publication quoted by IPN.
At the same time, the modern technologies imported from the EU will lead to higher productivity and higher salaries. The European experts already estimated that after the signing of the Association Agreement, Moldova’s exports to the EU will rise by 15% on a short term and by 16% on a long term, while imports will grow by only 6%-8%.
The rise in exports will be mainly due to the reduction in sanitary and phytosanitary and technical barriers. In the agricultural sector, the lower taxes will lead to a 30% increase in the exports of sugar, grains, etc. The taxes on industrial products will also decrease when the Association Agreement takes effect.
The same estimates show that the GDP on a short term will rise by 3.2%, while on a long term – by 5.4%. As a result of the creation of the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area, Transnistria’s GDP will increase by 3.6%. If the region refuses to benefit from this agreement, its GDP will fall by 5.2%.
The EU market is the largest in the world, with 500 million consumers. The GDP in the EU is about US$20 trillion.
